Always Only You by Chloe Liese (z-lib.org).epub

lands, warm in my belly.
Someone’s hand rests on my back, breaking the moment. I don’t know Willa
well enough to read her face, but thankfully she speaks before I’m left
wondering any longer. “I was hoping you’d get to use the Elder Wand,” she
says. “You okay?”
“You’re not the only one who’s disappointed. That guy’s overdue for a dick
smacking.” I thank Joe when he returns my card and receipt, which I sign with a
flourish. “But, yeah, I’m okay. Just tired. I should head home.”
Not that I’m sure how that’s happening. Normally, I drive myself
everywhere and burn through audiobooks to pass the staggering amount of time I
spend in LA traffic. But my car’s “check engine” light was on yesterday, so it's
in the shop. Rob drove me to Louie’s and would I’m sure gladly drive me home
as well, but he’s still handling Maddox, meaning I have to wait or catch a ride
with someone else. I don’t do late-night taxi rides alone.
“Frankie,” Ren says. “Let me drive you.”
I glance up at Ren and commence a Frankie-stare for the books. His eyes are
luminous, gray as fog, the kind that blots out your world but for a few feet in
front of you, that makes you question what’s up or down. So many times, I’ve
had the unsettling feeling I could get just as lost in them.
“Let him drive you,” Willa says. She smiles while threading her arms
through her jacket. Ryder steps behind her and helps her get it up over her
shoulders, giving her arms an affectionate squeeze as he plants a kiss on top of
her head. A small, intimate gesture brimming with so much love, I feel like I just
saw something I shouldn’t have.
“I may be a little rusty on my LA geography,” she says, “but Hawthorne’s on
the way. We’re staying at Ren’s for the night, and he’s driving us, too. It’ll be a
dance party in the new van.”
My attention snaps to Ren. “You bought a van?”
Ren’s cheeks redden, but he stands tall. “Heck, yes, I bought a van. There’s
no shame in owning a Honda Odyssey.”
Willa clears her throat and grins, while Ryder’s shoulders shake with what
sounds like laughter. He hides it behind a cough into his fist.
I recognize Ren’s posture as signifying defensiveness and immediately feel
bad for opening my mouth. This happens sometimes. I ask a question, and
people hear…more than a question. They hear criticism or judgment or teasing.
I’ve given up trying to explain that my brain isn’t wired for that subtlety, that I
couldn’t imply those kinds of layers of meaning if I wanted to, because one too
many times, people haven’t believed me. They hear excuses, rather than context.
So, I stopped trying, and told myself to quit caring when I’m misunderstood.